Political Reasonableness and Nature’s Otherness

Abstract: This paper restates my argument that certain forms of liberalism can and should accept a non-instrumental perspective on the natural world. This perspective is unpacked in terms of ‘respect for nature’s otherness’. Liberalism is represented by Rawlsian political liberalism. I claim there are important congruencies between respect for nature’s otherness and the ‘reasonableness’ involved in political liberalism, such that the latter should incorporate the former. Following a suggestion of B. Baxter I reconsider these congruencies with particular emphasis on the roles of toleration and integrity. I also explain further why I think it arbitrary, rather than logically inconsistent, of the political liberal to exclude respect for nature’s otherness from her conception of the political. Finally I argue that insofar as liberalism embraces ecological justice on the basis of the considerability of non-human interests, it cannot consistently exclude respect for nature’s otherness.

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Political Reasonableness and Nature’s Otherness ; volume:28 ; number:2 ; year:2006 ; pages:173-189 ; extent:17 ; Analyse & Kritik ; 28, Heft 2 (2006), 173-189 (gesamt 17)

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Hailwood, Simon

Further information

• DOI: 10.1515/auk-2006-0204
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-2404171618370.442777207527
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 14.08.2025, 10:52 AM CEST